Valentines Day!

As I'm sure you are all well aware, a very sweet holiday is arriving on Monday of this week.  Everywhere I look lately I see hearts and candy.  Lots of candy.  My wide-eyed daughter saw it too and requested that we make three very specific things for her Daddy for Valentines day (which I'm sure is only slightly selfish in nature):  Lollipops, cookies, and heart-shaped chocolates.  And seeing as I got a candy thermometer and a linzer cookie cut out set for Christmas/Birthday from my ever-supportive mom . . . I said sure!!

So I picked the most interesting of the three to show you . . . lollipops.  I have never made hard candy before because it always looked so difficult.  It turns out that its actually not as bad as it looks.  And its gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and nutt-free.  Now if only it was sugar-free and low-calorie it might be the perfect dessert. :)

Its a short shopping list for lollipops.

Hard Candy Molds
Lollipop sticks
2/3 C Light Corn Syrup (Not pictured)
2 C Sugar
3/4 C Water
1/4 tsp Food Coloring (gel or liquid)
Flavoring Oil - One Dram (LorAnn is a premium retailer)
Spray Vegetable Oil
Candy Thermometer
Small Saucepan (I suggest a 3 or 4 quart)

You begin by lightly oiling the candy molds.  Depending on the size of the molds, you will need several.  The bigger mold pictured you would need at least five, the smaller mold I would say closer to seven.  Since I wasn't sure how much the batch would make, I had four molds (two of each) and a greased cookie sheet.

Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup.  Stir it over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved.  Once its dissolved, bring the mixture to a boil without stirring it by raising the heat.  At this point I would insert the thermometer and clip it to the side of the pan.  The bulb of the thermometer should be submerged in liquid but not touching the bottom of the pan.  

When the temperature on the thermometer reaches 260 degrees, add the food coloring.  Allow the natural boiling of the liquid to disperse the color for you.  

Allow it to continue to boil until 300 degrees and immediately remove it from the heat as the candy temperature will continue to rise while it is still boiling.  Wait until the liquid is no longer boiling, then add the flavoring oil and stir.  

Pour the liquid into the greased molds and/or onto the greased cookie sheet.  In the case of the cookie sheet, score marks for easier breaking later on.  I need some practice to make sure its the correct amount of liquid, but overall this step is fairly self-explanatory.  Put the lollipop sticks in the molds before or after pouring, it didn't seem to have too much of a different outcome.

After 30 minutes to an hour the molds/sheet should be cool enough to remove the candies.  And wha-la!  Lollipops!

And for an added bonus, cover them in little bags and use decorative twist-ties or ribbon to tie them closed.  

My daughter has already eaten two and given many to friends.  What a great gift idea!!

And just for pictures and a few more ideas . . .

Molded Chocolate Candies . . . 

Linzer Cookies (Well actually, sugar cookies with buttercream frosting)

And if you need more ideas check out Bakerella's site and the Pioneer Woman.  That should be enough for you to get the creative juices flowing, right?? :)

Happy Baking!!

Hard Candy / Lollipop

2 cups sugar 2/3 cup light corn syrup 3/4 cup water 1/4 tsp food coloring 1 tsp flavoring

1 Lightly oil hard candy molds (vegetable oil). 2 In a large saucepan, mix together sugar, corn syrup and water. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. 3 Bring mixture to a boil without stirring. 4 When syrup temperature reaches 260o F, add color. Do not stir; boiling action will incorporate color into syrup. 5 Remove from heat at 300 degrees or when drops of syrup form hard brittle threads in cold water. (Temperature will continue to rise after removing from heat, so remove precisely at 300 degrees). 6 After boiling action ceases, add flavoring and stir. USE CAUTION WHEN ADDING FLAVORING TO AVOID RISING STEAM. 7 Pour into lightly oiled candy molds (not chocolate molds), or onto greased cookie sheet and score to mark squares. 8 When cool, unmold or break into pieces. You can also dust with powdered sugar to prevent sticking. Store in airtight containers.

Servings: 24

Degree of Difficulty Degree of Difficulty: Difficult

Nutrition Facts Serving size: 1/24 of a recipe (1.2 ounces). Percent daily values based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet. Nutrition information calculated from recipe ingredients. One of the recipe's ingredients was not linked. This ingredient is not included in the recipe nutrition data. Amount Per Serving Calories 92.96 Calories From Fat (2%) 1.83 % Daily Value Total Fat 0.21g <1% Saturated Fat 0.03g <1% Cholesterol 0mg 0% Sodium 6.26mg <1% Potassium 0.5mg <1% Total Carbohydrates 23.94g 8% Fiber 0g 0% Sugar 19.17g Protein 0g 0%

Sweet Surrender's First Cake

Tomorrow is a big day for me, and my bakery in the making.  Tomorrow, I give Ellen, the winner of the bakery naming competition, the first cake made by Sweet Surrender Bakery.  I have goosebumps.  I also took a million pictures like the geek that I am. :)

Oh and side-note:   Ellen requested the Flourless Chocolate Cake, so I bought the more expensive spring form pan and it turns out its not the pan that makes the side release from the bottom as much as it is the parchment paper.  Just be careful to only touch the bottom of the pan after filling it.  Between the paper and the oil, the bottom will pop right out of the sides if the sides are readjusted.

So without further ado I give you, the cake . . .

And then in its pretty box . . . 

And last but not least the proverbial "icing" on my "cake" . . . 

So lookout Ellen, here it comes!!

Flourless Chocolate Cake

In the past few weeks I have been working on developing my low-carb line of baked goods.  Its definitely harder than it sounds as I have tried many recipes only to have them taste like cardboard.  Sigh.  Well, I suppose that's why they call it trying, right?

I have however succeeded on a few fronts: Chocolate chip cookies, Tiramisu, Truffles, and Flourless Chocolate Cake.  The last of which I simply have to tell you about.  The recipe I used was Paula Deen's, from her "Chocolate Celebration" edition.

So lets get baking.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Take out your 9-inch springform pan, and pull it apart.  Place some parchment paper over the bottom and snap it back into place.  Generously spray pan and paper with cooking spray.  I would suggest buying the better, more expensive version of the pan . . . I will show you why in a few pictures.

I particularly like my cutting job in this photo . . . lol.

Separate 6 eggs, put the whites in the bowl of your mixer, and the centers in a small mixing bowl.  Set aside.

Next take 8 oz of semisweet chocolate bits, and 4 oz of dark chocolate bits (or broken bars of the same.  This recipe is all about the chocolate so if you have a favorite brand, use it.  It will only enhance the recipe.  I used Hershey's bits) and put them in a microwave safe bowl.  Add two (count them TWO!) sticks of butter to the chocolate and microwave in 30 second intervals until completely melted and smooth.  I suggest cutting the butter into pads, instead of leaving it in whole sticks.  It makes it melt more evenly.  And when you are done you have this glorious bowl of chocolate and butter . . . .

And if you are like me, you honestly contemplate forgetting about the recipe and diving in with a spoon.  But then you remember its low-carb, moderation driven....right.  Moving on . . . 

Whisk in 1 1/4 cup of sugar to the chocolate.  Once that's mixed completely, add in each egg yolk, one a time, whisking in between each addition.  Set aside momentarily.

Using the whisk attachment, set your mixer on high and whisk the yolks until stiff peaks form.  

Can you believe that is just egg whites??  Wow.

Anyway, take these egg whites, and fold it in the chocolate mixture until completely combined.  Mmmm . . . pour the gorgeous, chocolaty goodness into your already ready pan.  

And this would be why you should buy the expensive pan.  I have a very old, very inexpensive version and as you can see in the upper right hand corner of my photo, about 1/4 cup of the liquid fell out when the already snapped in place pan caved under the pressure.  I cried . . . well, almost. :)

Bake this for an hour. 

Then cool it on the counter for an hour.  During this time it will fall, all the way . . . and you will totally be tempted to eat it . . . but don't.  Put it in the refrigerator for AT LEAST four hours before removing it from the springform pan.  Trust me, it is completely worth the wait.

Then eat it in all its gloriousness.  I did not get a picture of the end product . . . due to a small accident I refer to as my three-year-old. :)  However, I'll include a link to a favorite person of mine, Bakerella, whose end result looked simply glorious.  And is how its supposed to look.  But no matter how it looks, the taste is what sells you.  So chocolatly, you can really only eat a small piece.

And this is where the low-carb portion comes in.  Its such intense chocolate, you are able to have a smaller piece.  So if you cut it in twelve pieces it is 2 carb choices, or 30 grams of carb.  If you cut it in 16 pieces, its 1 1/2 carb choices (and still feels like you had a terribly bad for you dessert).  For those of you with diabetes, you understand this is really low on the diabetes scale . . . which is fantastic!! :)

So get out your pans, your chocolate and your patience, and make a dessert that your entire family will love!  Then share it with all your low-carb eating friends!

HAPPY BAKING!! :)

Flourless Chocolate Cake (Paula Deen)

8 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips 4 oz dark chocolate 1/2 lb butter 1 1/4 cup sugar 6 eggs, separated

1 Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 2 Place some parchment paper on the bottom of a springform pan so it hangs over. Close the latch to hold the paper in place and secure the sides. You'll also want to generously spray the paper/pan with some non-stick cooking spray. 3 Separate 6 large eggs -- yolks in a small bowl and egg whites in a mixing bowl. Set aside. 4 Combine chocolate and 2 sticks of butter. Melt in microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth. 5 Whisk in 1 1/4 cups sugar until combined. 6 Add the six yolks to the chocolate and sugar mixture, one at a time, whisking after each addition. 7 In the mixing bowl, beat the six egg whites on high with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Then, gently fold egg white mixture in the melted chocolate mixture until combined. 8 Pour it in the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour at 325. It will rise pretty high in the oven but when you take it out, it will fall and fall hard. 9 Let it cool one hour on the counter and then for at least four hours in the refrigerator before you release it from the pan.

Servings: 12

Cooking Times Preparation Time: 30 minutes Cooking Time: 1 hour Inactive Time: 5 hours Total Time: 6 hours and 30 minutes

Nutrition Facts Serving size: 1/12 of a recipe (2.8 ounces). Percent daily values based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet. Nutrition information calculated from recipe ingredients. Amount Per Serving Calories 319.79 Calories From Fat (59%) 190.13 % Daily Value Total Fat 21.96g 34% Saturated Fat 13.01g 65% Cholesterol 133.64mg 45% Sodium 39.35mg 2% Potassium 39.45mg 1% Total Carbohydrates 30.01g 10% Fiber 0.84g 3% Sugar 20.9g Protein 3.9g 8%